Automated meat analogue production systems

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods describe improvements in the automated production of meat analogues. Ingredients are provided, including oil, water, binding agent(s), and one or more forms of protein to be separately and continuously conveyed through a facility. Concurrently to the ingredients being conveyed through the facility, a number of actions occur. The system emulsifies the oil, water, and binding agent(s) within an emulsifying machine to form a final emulsion. A hydration process is separately applied to at least one of the forms of protein. The system mixes and conveys the protein(s) with the final emulsion in a final mixer to form a final dough.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 17/518,544, filed Nov. 3, 2021, which in turnclaims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/118,597,filed Nov. 25, 2020, both of which are hereby incorporated by referencein their entireties herein. This application is also related to U.S.patent application Ser. No. 17/518,513, and U.S. patent application Ser.No. 17/518,499, both filed Nov. 3, 2021.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to food processing, and moreparticularly to devices and methods used in the production of meatanalogue products.

BACKGROUND

Plant-based meat production is a growing industry, and plant-based meatproducts are becoming increasingly popular due to the improving qualityand appeal of these products. While the potential market for plant-basedmeat is growing, there are several issues within the production ofplant-based meat which account for the small size of the plant-basedmeat industry in comparison to competition in the animal meat sector.Specifically, the production of plant-based meat as well as analoguemeat in general is currently characterized by high prices, low volume,and/or inconsistent quality. While many factors feed these issues,production methods and equipment are central to scalability, qualitycontrol, and the cost of the goods. In contrast, while the chickenindustry has standardized and optimized the slaughter and deconstructionof chicken into chicken products since the 1960's, no such full scalestandardization nor optimization has been attempted with analogue meatproduction, including plant-based meat production.

There are several critical production and equipment inefficiencies whichcan be identified for plant-based meat. Currently, the majority ofplant-based meat is produced using batch-based “mix and form” methods,wherein large batches of ingredients are kept together and mixedthroughout as they are hydrated, emulsified, and further processed. As aresult of batch-based mix and form methods, the highly viscous materialscreated during production of the plant-based meat must be mixedvigorously within a large batch mixer in large volumes/quantities. Whenbatch processing is performed with large mixing tools, an excessiveamount of heat is generated during the mixing of the high viscousmaterials such as plant-based meat dough. This can result in a varietyof food chemistry problems which may cause dry and unpalatable finishedproducts. This condition also adversely impacts quality of the texture,flavor, and palatability of the final product. This undesirable heatingcondition may not be noticeable to producers at small scales, as theimpact of high-viscous mixing is amplified by production in highervolumes.

Large-scale batch mixing further risks quality in terms of non-uniformmixing, such as leaving dry powder spots which are difficult to see in ahuge vat. Non-uniform mixing caused by “dead zones” in large mixers is awell-documented issue and limits the feasible size of each batch, whichthus requires serial manufacturing (or higher capital investment inmultiple mixers for parallel manufacturing). For each of these batches,precisely measuring out all the ingredients is a labor- andtime-intensive process, thus compounding the process inefficiencies ofbatch manufacturing.

Furthermore, plant-based meat producers often use the same foodproduction equipment as producers of actual meat products. Just as inmeat products, plant-based meat products made using this equipment mustbe processed in chilled, refrigerated facilities, typically 40 degreesFahrenheit or lower, to control pathogen growth in the “meat” substrate(hereinafter “dough”) during processing. In the case of plant-basedmeat, chilled environment processing is needed for better formation ofthe ingredients and to achieve the right texture and food chemistrywithin the dough. However, some experimental results show that facilitychilling is insufficient to change the temperature of plant-based meatdough that has been heated during processing steps referenced above andtherefore may not be effective for pathogen control during production ofplant-based meat dough once the process is scaled to larger batches.Further, such refrigerated environments are exceptionally costly tooperate and maintain, and this environment is extremely physicallydemanding on production workers. Additionally, a refrigeratedenvironment may promote the spread of human-borne pathogens, such ascoronaviruses, among workers. Studies of coronavirus inactivation ratesin environments with varying ambient temperature and relative humiditysuggest that these pathogens, and perhaps others, may be spread morereadily in a low-temperature, low-moisture environment such as arefrigerated food production facility.

In addition, due to the highly viscous nature of the ingredients whichhave been created in the plant-based meat production process, large bowlmixers and other mixing tools containing large batches of the materialmust be scooped in and out manually or with mechanical assistance byproduction workers. In order to add the ingredients, workers must liftheavy buckets into the mixing tools. Because the bulk of the weight ofthe dough is water in manually-prepared ingredients (e.g., water in anoil-water emulsion and hydrated protein), lifting the ingredients tofill the mixers is especially difficult. This task is labor intensiveand dangerous for such workers because it risks arm and back relatedinjuries to the worker or entanglement with mechanical assistancemachinery. Overall, the production of plant-based meat dough is laborintensive and is subject to technician variation and/or error in theoperation of processing tools.

Thus, there is a need in the field of food processing to create new anduseful systems and methods for the automated production of meatanalogues, including plant-based meat. The source of the problem, asdiscovered by the inventors, is a lack of a continuous ornear-continuous flow process utilizing automated production equipment toproduce plant-based meat and meat analogues generally.

SUMMARY

It is an advantage of the present disclosure to provide improved systemsand methods for the automated production of meat analogues. Thedisclosed features, apparatuses, systems, and methods provide productionof meat analogues at significantly lower costs, higher efficiency, andwith better end results in terms of taste and texture, compared tobatch-based processes. These advantages can be accomplished at least inpart by providing a new process for producing meat analogues whicheschews the batch-based mix and form processing of the current state ofmeat analogue production, in favor of isolating and separatingingredients during production, and continuously conveying thoseingredients during preparatory processing before continuous-flow mixing.The result of this new process is that the ingredients move throughseveral steps of the production process without being mixed all at once.The benefit of this new process is that ingredients can be separatelyprocessed under the conditions ideal for individual ingredientcombination subsets, and then scaled in a fashion that maintains thisprocessing in isolation from materials which do not require anotherprocessing effort. As a result, the ingredients only come together in afinal mixer at a later step of processing after which all subsets ofingredients have been properly handled in separate feeder lines intothis system. This avoids extraneous processing that would otherwiseunnecessarily add heat to the ingredients with no other processingbenefit, thereby avoiding quality problems that result from excessiveheat in the dough. In addition, the new process differs from the currentproduction process in that the facilities where it takes place need notbe refrigerated or chilled. Rather, chilling occurs at individual stagesof subset processing which are local to specific ingredients, and at thefinal mixing stage. Processing in an ambient facility (i.e., a facilitythat is neither refrigerated, nor chilled, nor cooled aside fromproviding a comfortable work environment) leads to substantial costreductions for plant operations and increased worker comfort. Localizedchilling ensures effectiveness of refrigeration applications to keepmaterials at proper temperatures for processing and quality control.

In the new process, the system provides ingredients including oil,water, binding agent(s) (such as methylcellulose), and one or more formsof protein (potentially both dry textured protein and dry powderedprotein), to be separately and continuously conveyed through a facility(such as, e.g., a food production facility). Concurrently to theingredients being conveyed through the facility, a number of actionsoccur. In some embodiments, a chilling process is separately applied tothe water and/or the oil. A hydration process is separately applied toat least one of the forms of protein. The system emulsifies the oil,water, and binding agent(s) within an emulsifying machine to form afinal emulsion (such as, e.g., a low-viscosity gel final emulsion). Thisaction may be multi-stage, including a process such as, e.g.: thepre-dispersal of the one or more binding agents within the oil beforemixing with water; or pre-mixing the oil and water to form an unstablesuspension, before mixing with the one or more binding agents; or mixingthe oil, water, and one or more binding agents together in one step. Thesystem mixes and conveys the final emulsion, hydrated proteins, andpotentially additional powdered ingredients (such as dry powderedprotein, binder, seasoning) in a final mixer to form a cohesive finaldough. In some embodiments, a chilling system (such as, e.g., a chillerand cooling jacket) is used to maintain the temperature of ingredientsand final dough throughout the various stages of the process wherenecessary for a particular recipe. Such a chilling system may beintegrated with one or more components of the system at various stagesof the process (e.g., integrated with or surrounding a feeding hopper,pre-mixer, hydration or mixing equipment, or any other suitablecomponent of the system). The system may optionally be configured formonitoring and/or control of feed flow, monitoring and/or control of thetemperature of ingredients, and/or other monitoring or control aspects.

Other apparatuses, methods, features, and advantages of the disclosurewill be or will become apparent to one with skill in the art uponexamination of the following figures and detailed description. It isintended that all such additional apparatuses, methods, features andadvantages be included within this description, be within the scope ofthe disclosure, and be protected by the accompanying claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The included drawings are for illustrative purposes and serve only toprovide examples of possible structures and arrangements for thedisclosed methods and apparatuses for progressive hydration. Thesedrawings in no way limit any changes in form and detail that may be madeto the disclosure by one skilled in the art without departing from thespirit and scope of the disclosure.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic view of a prior art process for meatanalogue production.

FIG. 2 illustrates a flowchart of an example method of providingautomated meat analogue production.

FIG. 3 illustrates a system diagram of an example system for providingautomated meat analogue production.

FIG. 4 illustrates a system diagram of an alternative example system forproviding automated meat analogue production.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Exemplary applications of apparatuses, systems, and methods according tothe present disclosure are described in this section. These examples arebeing provided solely to add context and aid in the understanding of thedisclosure. It will thus be apparent to one skilled in the art that thepresent disclosure may be practiced without some or all of thesespecific details provided herein. In some instances, well known processsteps have not been described in detail in order to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring the present disclosure. Other applications are possible, suchthat the following examples should not be taken as limiting. In thefollowing detailed description, references are made to the accompanyingdrawings, which form a part of the description and in which are shown,by way of illustration, specific embodiments of the present disclosure.Although these embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enableone skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, it is understood thatthese examples are not limiting, such that other embodiments may beused, and changes may be made without departing from the spirit andscope of the disclosure.

The present disclosure relates in various embodiments to features,apparatuses, systems, and methods for the production of meat analogues,such as, e.g., plant-based meat, meatless burgers, chicken nuggets, andother similar vegetarian or vegan foodstuff which does not contain meatin its ingredients. The disclosed embodiments can be used for preparing,processing, hydrating, emulsifying, and/or mixing various ingredients ofplant-based meat, including proteins such as, e.g., textured soy proteinor soy protein isolate as well as similar plant-based proteins fromother plant sources in a similar form (e.g., pea protein and fava beanprotein).

In some embodiments, the system can utilize a hydration component forplant-based proteins. In some embodiments, the hydration componentefficiently processes the material while concurrently hydrating itcontinuously and progressively. In some embodiments, the hydrationcomponent also concurrently conveys the material while it is beinghydrated and/or processed.

In some embodiments, material such as textured vegetable protein isprovided to be conveyed through a material passage between a pair ofnested cylinders, where an inner cylinder or shaft rotates to agitateand convey the material. In some embodiments, the material is thenprocessed via a series of particle resizing features extending along thematerial passage. Such particle resizing features may be, e.g., blades,blunt-shaped teeth, screw threads, flutes, or similar protrusionsextending from the inner cylinder or shaft. While the material isconveyed through the material passage, the particle resizing featurescan process, e.g., shred, shear, and/or chop the material into smallermaterial particles. At the same time, water is metered into the materialpassage while post-processing continues, resulting in the materialparticles being continuously and progressively hydrated during thepost-processing step. In some embodiments, the end result is a morefibrous material which more closely resembles the texture and taste ofmeat than previous solutions could provide, with a more consistent sizefor each material particle leading to more uniform results.

In some embodiments, material such as texturized protein is conveyedthrough a stationary exterior tube with a rotating inner shaft, whichholds one or more progression features (such as, e.g., an auger). Insome embodiments, one or more bodies for shear crushing may additionallybe present. In various embodiments, the shear crushing bodies may beoffset cams, solid or sectioned spheroids, ribbed beaters, or any othersuitable bodies for shear crushing. In some embodiments, material may becrushed and/or sheared between the flutes of the conveying auger and oneor more additional surfaces. These shear crushing surfaces may compriseflutes of a partial or full shearing auger, or stationary protrusionssuch as fins from the exterior tube into the material passage. In someembodiments, water is concurrently added via one or more hydration portswhich are configured to provide a metered flow rate of incoming water.

In some embodiments, material such as texturized protein is conveyedthrough a stationary exterior tube with a rotating inner shaft, whichholds one or more agitation and/or progression features (such as, e.g.,an auger). In some embodiments, the shaft oscillates in rotation (suchas, e.g., two rotations clockwise followed immediately by one rotationcounterclockwise). In some embodiments, water is concurrently added viaone or more hydration ports which are configured to provide a meteredflow rate of incoming water.

In some embodiments, the system provides for the emulsification ofingredients such as water, oil, and binding agents. In some embodiments,this is accomplished by progressively imparting shear stresses ontofluids in order to bind them during processing. In some embodiments,this is accomplished by first mixing together and dispersing the bindingagent(s) within the oil; then adding water in a high-speed high-shearcontinuous mixer (such as, e.g., a homogenizer or colloid mill). In someembodiments, this is accomplished by first mixing together the oil andwater to form an unstable suspension, then adding the binding agent(s)under conditions of high shear and turbulent mixing. In someembodiments, the oil, water, and binding agent(s) are all mixedtogether. In some embodiments, additional binding agent(s) may be addedduring the final dough mixing stage.

Although various embodiments disclosed herein discuss the preparationand processing of textured soy protein, soy protein isolate, and otherplant-based proteins intended to be used in meat analogue production, itwill be readily appreciated that the disclosed features, apparatuses,systems, and methods can similarly be used for any relevant ingredientsto be used in food production. For example, the disclosed system mayalso be used with plant-based proteins in powdered or other forms otherthan texturized form, or potentially with some meat-based proteins orother non-plant-based proteins. In some embodiments methylcellulose isused as a binder, but in other embodiments other binders may be used,such as, e.g., soy lecithin, potato starch, or citrus fiber. In somesituations, the disclosed automated processes and systems can also beused to hydrate and process materials that are not foodstuff-based.Other applications, arrangements, and extrapolations beyond theillustrated embodiments are also contemplated.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a schematic view of a prior art process for meatanalogue production is illustrated according to some embodiments ofpresent invention. The prior art process illustrates one previous orcurrent way of producing meat analogues in a food production facility.

The bowl chopper 100 in the prior art process is a tool utilized foremulsifying, chopping, and mixing ingredients in a batch-based process.Water and oil 102 are poured into the bowl chopper 100 and mixed to forma suspension. Next, one or more binding agent(s) 104 are slowly pouredinto the bowl chopper 100 and chopped to form an emulsion. Concurrently,powdered protein and seasonings and water 106 are poured into a bucket,mixed and hydrated well, then poured into the bowl chopper 100 followinga resting period for the emulsion. Textured protein and water 108 arethen poured into a bucket, mixed and allowed time to fully hydrate, thenpoured into the bowl chopper 100. Finally, the combined ingredients aremixed together in the bowl chopper 100 and the resulting mixed dough 110is scooped out manually by workers to be formed (e.g., into the shape ofa chicken nugget) and further prepared as a plant-based meat product.

Within this prior art process, ingredients follow the batch-based mixand form method, which essentially involves preparing some ingredientsmanually, then putting all ingredients into a large bowl chopper andmixing them together. This involves emulsifying oil, water, and one ormore binding agents (such as, e.g., methylcellulose); preparingingredients manually (including hydrating textured protein and/orpowdered protein, and, in some embodiments, pre-mixing flavorings withprotein); and finally, mixing everything together in the bowl chopper,as a batch process. The ingredients get mixed together as a homogeneousmixture as new ingredients are poured in. If all ingredients are pouredin at once, and/or are not properly manually prepared, chemicalreactions critical to the final dough structure are performedsuboptimally. As a result, for example, water can be leached fromtextured soy protein to the methylcellulose or other binding agent,leading to suboptimal binding and inhomogeneous hydration. To avoid suchan issue, individual ingredients are in some cases manually preparedseparately, slowly added to the bowl and processed sequentially. Thiscauses bottlenecks and necessitates batch processing upstream as well,which further exacerbates the inefficiencies within the system.

As an additional challenge, the bowl chopper does not provide for smoothmaterial conveyance to the next production stage; rather, productionworkers must manually scoop the final dough ingredients to the nextprocessing component, which is difficult as this material is oftendense, highly viscous, and extremely sticky. (While material conveyanceoptions exist for large bowl choppers, they are designed for animal meatproducts, and usually cannot accommodate such dense, viscous, and stickymaterial as plant-based meat dough.) Also, there is no separate chillingstage or other temperature control for individual ingredients; instead,the entire facility is chilled or refrigerated in order to process theingredients. This ambient chilling is not only exceedinglyenergy-intensive, but also inefficient to cool plant-based meat doughmaterial. Furthermore, ambient chilling can lead to an increased rate ofinfection for human-transmissible airborne viruses and other contagions,as well as creating an uncomfortable environment in which workers mustendure the cold for long shifts, among other concerns.

FIG. 2 illustrates a flowchart of an example method 200 of providingautomated meat analogue production, in accordance with some embodiments.

At step 202, the system provides ingredients including oil, water, oneor more binding agent(s), and one or more forms of protein to beseparately and continuously conveyed through a facility, such as, e.g.,a food production facility. In some embodiments, the one or more bindingagent(s) may include methylcellulose, citrus fiber, or any othersuitable form of emulsification agent associated with meat analogues orplant-based meat. In some embodiments, the one or more forms of proteinmay be textured protein, protein isolate, powdered protein, or any othersuitable form of protein associated with meat analogues or plant-basedmeat.

In some embodiments, the system is configured to provide the oil via anoil reservoir. The oil reservoir may be any reservoir, tank, or othercontainer storing oil. The oil may be any oil used in food products,such as canola oil or vegetable oil. In some embodiments, the oil ispumped from the oil reservoir into the next component in the system. Theoil is separate and isolated from other ingredients within the system.

In some embodiments, the oil reservoir may be sized according to theamount of oil required during a certain period of continuous production,and one or more binding agent(s) may be added to the reservoir. The oiland binding agent(s) may be actively stirred, continuously orintermittently, such that the binding agent(s) remain(s) uniformlysuspended in the oil, forming a slurry. In some embodiments, this slurryis pumped from the reservoir into the next component in the system.

In some embodiments, the system is configured to provide the water viastandard city/building water plumbing in the facility. In someembodiments, the system is configured to provide the water via a waterreservoir. The water reservoir may be any reservoir, tank, or othercontainer storing water. In some embodiments, the water may be some formof filtered water or other water to be used in food production. In someembodiments, the water is pumped from the water reservoir into the nextcomponent in the system. The water is separate and isolated from otheringredients within the system.

In some embodiments, the system is configured to provide the forms ofprotein via one or more continuous feeders with integrated materialstorage hoppers. For example, textured soy protein may be dispensed froma feeder associated with that textured soy protein, and soy proteinisolate may be dispensed via a powdered soy protein feeder. In someembodiments, the feeder allows for the protein to be dispensed into thenext component, and may allow for the protein to be metered at aspecific desired volumetric or gravimetric flow rate. In someembodiments, these feeders may be gravimetric (“loss-in-weight”) feederswith integrated control systems, such that the feeders continuallyoutput a constant mass-flow rate of material. In some embodiments, thesefeeders may be volumetric, such that the feeders are set to output anominally-constant volume-flow rate of material. In some embodiments,these feeders may be vibratory feeders or screw feeders.

In some embodiments, the ingredients are conveyed through the facilityvia any suitable means of conveyance within a food productionenvironment. For example, the ingredients may be conveyed via one ormore conveyor belts, pumps, rotating tube delivery systems (e.g., augerscrews), or other typical forms of conveyance.

At optional step 204 and according to some embodiments, the systemseparately provides a chilling process to the ingredient water and/oroil. The chilling process may be some form of temperature-controlledprocess for chilling or refrigerating the water and/or oil, eitherin-line (i.e., concurrently to the water and/or oil being conveyed) orin-reservoir (such as by providing a chiller and jacket around a waterand/or oil reservoir).

At step 206, concurrently to the ingredients being conveyed through thefacility, and optionally after a chilling process is provided to thewater in step 204, the system hydrates one or more forms of protein. Insome embodiments with multiple forms of protein, each form of proteincan be hydrated through the same machine, while in other embodiments,each form of protein is hydrated through a separate machine. In someembodiments, not all of the one or more forms of protein are hydrated.

In some embodiments, the hydration process may involve a process ofprogressive hydration. A hydrator may function to provide water whichhydrates new surface areas of the protein which are exposed duringagitation and/or particle size reduction of the protein. In someembodiments, the water may be provided via one or more metered waterports, which are configured to provide water for hydrating the proteinas it is conveyed along the conveyance chamber. The water may be meteredaccording to any number of methods, including directly via a valvefeeding into the hydrator, or through pump pressure or upstream flowcontrols. In some embodiments, the water is metered according to apredefined hydration curve specific to the material.

In some embodiments, the hydration process includes or is concurrent toone or more processing methods or processes. The protein can beprocessed into smaller protein particles in this fashion while thehydration of the protein occurs. In various embodiments, the processingmay include one or more of the following: shredding, shearing,fracturing (e.g., initially fracturing in order to homogeneouslydecrease particle size), and/or metered expulsion. In variousembodiments, the processing may additionally or alternatively includeone or more of the following: chopping, extruding (e.g., dispersion ofwater for powdered material, such as an auger pushing through a die),crushing, grinding, breaking, slicing, homogeneously processing,inhomogeneously processing, pulverizing, homogeneously mixing, tearing,scission, mincing, pulling, macerating, smearing, uniformlydisseminating water, enhancing the mobility of water through thematerial for full dissemination, or any other suitable processingmethod.

At optional step 208 and according to some embodiments, concurrently tothe ingredients being conveyed through the facility, and optionallyafter a chilling process is provided to the water and/or the oil in step204, the system mixes two or more of the oil, water, and one or morebinding agent(s). In some embodiments, step 208 comprises mixing the oiland water in predefined amounts (or via matched continuous flow rates)to form an oil-water suspension. In some embodiments, this oil-watermixing may be seen as a “dropletizing” and/or “dispersing” stage priorto a later mixing stage. In some embodiments, a continuous-flowmechanical pump dropletizes the oil in the water.

In other embodiments, optional step 208 comprises mixing the oil and oneor more binding agent(s) to form a slurry, in which the one or morebinding agent(s) are dispersed or suspended homogeneously within theoil. In some embodiments, this oil-binding agent(s) mixing may beperformed in a reservoir, with a continuous mixer (such as, e.g., ahomogenizer or high-speed blender) to maintain suspension, and theresulting slurry pumped out to provide to step 210. In some embodiments,the oil-binding agent(s) mixing may be performed continuously in-line,via matched flow rates of ingredients and an in-line passive or activemixer, then provided to step 210.

At step 210, concurrently to the ingredients being conveyed through thefacility, and optionally in some embodiments after mixing one or more ofthe oil, water, and one or more binding agent(s) in step 208, the systememulsifies the oil, water, and one or more binding agent(s) in anemulsifying machine to form a final emulsion. In some embodiments, thebinding agent(s) may include methylcellulose, citrus fiber, or someother binding agent capable of binding or stabilizing.

In some embodiments, the emulsification is performed in a machine whichapplies shear stress and turbulent mixing to the fluids passing through(e.g., the oil, water, and one or more binding agent(s)) via high-speedrotation of elements composed of intermeshing blunt “teeth”, such as,e.g., a colloid mill. Such a machine may have multiple stages to refinethe emulsion.

In other embodiments, the emulsification is performed in a progressiveemulsifying machine by applying shear stress to the fluids passingthrough (e.g., the oil, water, and the one or more binding agent(s)).This is caused by movement of the progressive emulsifying machine alonga fluid passage to create shear stresses in the fluids. In someembodiments, movement can be rotational, such as by rotating an innerbody within a stationary outer body of the progressive emulsifyingmachine. In some embodiments, the progressive emulsifying machine mayconsist of multiple stages, wherein turbulence is provided in thetransition between stages.

In some embodiments, the emulsifying machine may be actively cooled,such as with a jacketed region around the material processing region toaccommodate continual coolant flow.

In traditional arrangements, the function performed by the emulsifyingmachine has been accomplished using a bowl chopper. It is generallyaccepted practice that an industrial bowl chopper must operate on agiven batch of foodstuff for six minutes or more to achieve a suitablelevel of emulsification. In addition to this inefficient length of time,substantial cooling methods are needed to counteract the undesirablerise in temperature due to the lengthy frictional operation of the bowlchopper. However, due to the large volume of foodstuff in the batch,jacket cooling and even chilled air cooling have been shown to havelittle chilling effect.

At step 212, concurrently to the ingredients being conveyed through thefacility, the system mixes the emulsion from step 210 in a final mixerwith the fully hydrated and processed proteins from step 206 to form amixed dough. At this point, the emulsion represents theoil-water-binding agent emulsion that has formed at the end of theemulsifying process of step 210. Due to the previous steps, theingredients are provided in a continuous or near-continuous flow (or,alternately, in small continuous or metered doses) as the emulsificationprocess of step 210 proceeds. The final mixer, rather than mixing largebatches (e.g., 50 or 200 pounds at a time as done in a bowl chopper) ofmaterial, mixes in the proteins and emulsion (and, in some embodiments,additional ingredients) in a continuous or near-continuous manner. As aresult of less work being performed on smaller volumes (instead of largebatches) during different stages (as seen throughout the overallprocess) as well as chilling methods which occurred in previous steps,the final dough temperature is suitable for further processing withoutrequiring a refrigerated environment. In some embodiments, the finalmixer may be further actively cooled, such as with a jacket surroundingthe processing area through which coolant continually flows.

The final mixer is configured to convey the dough while mixing it at thesame time. In some embodiments, the conveyance tool of the final mixerincludes incongruities such that the material is conveyed along, then isconveyed back to be mixed at the point of incongruity, then proceeds tobe conveyed forward once more. The end result is a mixed dough at theend of the process.

In some embodiments, the final mixer is a twin-screw continuous mixer.In other embodiments, the final mixer is a single-shaft mixing auger.

In some embodiments, in addition to hydrated protein and emulsion, drypowder is added to the final mixer. The powder addition is meteredthrough a continuous volumetric or gravimetric feeder. In someembodiments, the powder may be a mix of foodstuffs including, e.g.,powdered vegetable protein, seasonings, binding agent(s). In someembodiments, the powder may be metered via a feeder which feeds whileconcurrently mixing together multiple powdered foodstuffs. In someembodiments, individual powdered foodstuffs may be continuously fed intosuch a mixer feeder, metered via additional volumetric or gravimetricfeeders.

In some embodiments, the mixed dough is further conveyed to othercomponents which may, e.g., form the mixed dough into a chicken nugget,burger patty, or other suitable shape or form as desired. Additionalcomponents may fry, pack, package, and freeze the material. The endresult may be a final end product constituting a meat analogue orplant-based meat product, or other suitable end product as desired.

FIG. 3 illustrates a system diagram of an example system 300 forproviding automated meat analogue production. The system diagram showsan example of a food production system according to the new process forproducing meat analogues, as described above with respect to FIG. 2 .

Oil reservoir 302 may hold the oil, such as canola oil or vegetable oil,in a reservoir, tank, or other container. In some embodiments, a pump303 introduces the oil from the oil reservoir to an oil chiller 310 asdescribed above. In some embodiments the oil is provided to the chillerin a fully or nearly continuous flow, while in other embodiments the oilis provided in metered doses. In some embodiments the oil flow ismetered via pump controls; in others, the oil is pumped to a flowregulator or dosing apparatus, which may be used to provide a fullycontinuous or near-continuous flow of oil (or alternately, specificdosed amounts of the oil) into an optional pre-mixer 314 or directlyinto the emulsifying machine 316. Concurrently, in some embodiments awater reservoir 304 similarly contains water separately from the oil andother ingredients. In some embodiments, the water may be insteadprovided directly to the system via facility plumbing from standardmunicipality water (without necessity of a reservoir). In someembodiments, a pump 305 introduces the water to a water chiller 311, asdescribed above. One or more flow dividers 313 may then continuouslydivide the water flow into one or more protein hydrators 312 as well asinto an optional pre-mixer 314 and/or emulsifying machine 316. In someembodiments, water is instead provided to the optional pre-mixer 314and/or emulsifying machine 316 via a dosing apparatus which can dosespecific amounts of water.

Binding agent feeder 315 provides the one or more binding agent(s) tooptional pre-mixer 314 and/or emulsifying machine 316, in a continuousmetered fashion. Feeder 315 may be a gravimetric or volumetriccontinuous feeder, as described above. In some embodiments, feeder 315may be a vibratory or screw feeder. In some embodiments, the one or morebinding agent(s) are fed separately, each with its own feeder 315.

In some embodiments, the optional premixer 314 mixes together two ormore of the oil, water, and one or more binding agent(s). In someembodiments, the optional pre-mixer 314 mixes together the water and oilin a specific, predefined ratio to form an oil-water suspension, asdescribed above. In other embodiments, the optional pre-mixer 314 mixestogether the oil and one or more binding agent(s) in a specific,predefined ratio to form a slurry, as described above. The resultingliquid pre-mix is then conveyed to an emulsifying machine 316.

Concurrently to the processes for oil and water, multiple separate formsof proteins undergo a process as well. In this example, a texturedprotein feeder 306 functions to control the rate of the textured proteinadded to a textured protein hydrator 312, which is described above inrelation to the protein hydration process. Flow dividers of water mayprovide metered flows of water to the hydrator to hydrate the protein.Similarly, a powdered protein feeder 308 controls the rate of powderedprotein added to a powdered protein hydrator 312, as described above. Insome embodiments, the hydrators also provide chopping, shearing, orother forms of processing to the protein to produce smaller proteinparticles. In some embodiments, additional hydrators may be present tohydrate additional proteins. In some embodiments, only one hydrator maybe present. The multiple hydrated forms of protein are funneledseparately into the final mixer 320.

The resulting emulsified and hydrated ingredients are fed into a finalmixer 320; in some embodiments dosed via a material-holding hopper, inothers continuously flowing through an inlet such as, e.g., a simplefunnel. The final mixer 320 mixes the prepared ingredients in a fully ornearly continuous flow to create a dough. In some embodiments, the finalmixer 320 simultaneously mixes and conveys the emulsified ingredients.In some embodiments, the final mixer is a continuous twin-screw mixerwhich is oriented horizontally. In other embodiments, the final mixer isa mixing auger which may be angled upwards.

In some embodiments, in addition to the emulsified and hydratedingredients, one or more powder(s) are fed into the final mixer 320 viapowder feeder 318. The one or more powder(s) could include, e.g.,flavorings, powdered protein, or additional binding agent(s). In someembodiments, the one or more powder(s) may be separately dispensed viaadditional feeders 318. In some embodiments, the one or more powder(s)may be separately dispensed via additional feeders into a mixing feeder318, which dispenses the powder mixture into final mixer 320.

In some embodiments, the mixed dough is conveyed directly or via interimconveyance equipment into the hopper of a forming machine, wherein thedough can further be formed and have other production tasks applied toit. In the example shown, the mixed dough is provided via an inclineconveyor 332 to former hopper 334.

In some embodiments, an equipment chilling system 322 chills key piecesof equipment during processing. Coolant chiller 324 chills coolant (suchas, e.g., food-grade glycol mix), which is pumped via pump 326 into flowdivider 327. Flow divider 327 provides coolant to chilling jacket 328,which chills the emulsifying machine 316; and to chilling jacket 330,which chills the final mixer 320. The resulting warmed coolantrecirculates to coolant chiller 324 to be re-chilled. In otherembodiments, additional equipment (such as, e.g., the hydrator(s) 312,or ingredient feeders such as feeder 315 and 318) may be cooled bycirculating coolant through additional chilling jackets.

FIG. 4 illustrates a system diagram of a second embodiment of the systemfor providing automated meat analogue production, according to the newprocess for producing meat analogues, as described above with respect toFIG. 2 .

Oil reservoir 402 may hold the oil, such as canola oil or vegetable oil,in a reservoir, tank, or other container. In some embodiments, a pump403 flows the oil into an optional pre-mixer 414; in other embodiments,the oil is added directly into an emulsifying machine 416. In someembodiments, the oil flow is metered via pump controls; in others, theoil is pumped to a flow regulator or dosing apparatus, which may be usedto provide a fully continuous or near-continuous flow of oil (oralternately, specific dosed amounts of the oil).

Concurrently, in some embodiments a water reservoir 404 similarlycontains water separately from the oil and other ingredients. In someembodiments, the water may be instead provided directly to the systemvia facility plumbing from standard municipality water (withoutnecessity of a reservoir). In some embodiments, a pump introduces thewater to a water chiller 411, as described above. Flow divider 413 thendivides the water flow into protein hydrator 412 as well as theemulsifying machine 416.

In the embodiment shown, one or more binding agents are continually fedinto the optional pre-mixer 414 via a feeder 415. Optional pre-mixer 414then mixes together the oil and binding agent(s) in a specific,predefined ratio to form an oil-binder suspension. This oil-bindersuspension is then pumped into the emulsifying machine 416.

Binding agent feeder 415 provides the one or more binding agent(s) tooptional pre-mixer 414 and/or emulsifying machine 416, in a continuousmetered fashion. Feeder 415 may be a gravimetric or volumetriccontinuous feeder, as described above. In some embodiments, feeder 415may be a vibratory or screw feeder. In some embodiments, the one or morebinding agent(s) are fed separately, each with its own feeder 415.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 , the optional pre-mixer 314 mixestogether the oil and one or more binding agent(s) in a specific,predefined ratio to form a slurry, as described above. The resultingslurry is then pumped or otherwise conveyed to an emulsifying machine416.

Concurrently to the processes for oil and water binding, one or moreforms of proteins undergo a process as well. In this example, a proteinfeeder 408 functions to control the rate of the protein added to aprotein hydrator 412, which is described above in relation to theprotein hydration process. Feeder 408 may control the flow of theprotein via volumetric or gravimetric controls. In some embodiments,feeder 408 may be a vibratory or screw feeder. Flow dividers of watermay provide one or more metered flows of water to the hydrator tohydrate the protein. In some embodiments, the hydrator also provideschopping, shearing, or other forms of processing to the protein toproduce smaller protein particles. In some embodiments, the protein maybe a mixture of multiple varieties, such as, e.g., soy, wheat, peaprotein, fed in together or via additional separate feeders such asfeeder 408, hydrated together in one hydrator 412. In some embodiments,the protein is low-moisture-extruded textured vegetable protein; theprotein may also be powdered protein. In some embodiments, multiplefeeders 408 and hydrators 412 may be included to concurrently hydrateand/or process multiple varieties of protein. The hydrated protein fromhydrator(s) 412 is funneled separately into the final mixer 420; orfunneled into a conveyance auger (not shown), which combines thehydrated proteins together and feeds into a final mixer 420.

A powder feeder 418 controls the rate of one or more powders added tothe final mixer 420. Feeder 418 may control the flow of the powder(s)via volumetric or gravimetric controls. In some embodiments, feeder 418may be a vibratory or screw feeder. In some embodiments, the one or morepowders may be a mixture of multiple foodstuffs, such as, e.g.,seasonings, protein powder, one or more binding agents. In someembodiments, this protein powder may be a mixture of multiple varieties,such as, e.g., soy, wheat, pea protein, fed into the final mixer 420together, or via additional separate feeders such as feeder 418. In someembodiments, feeder 418 may actively mix the powders before or duringfeeding into the final mixer 420. Multiple foodstuff powders may be fedinto a mixing feeder 418 via additional similar continuous feeders. Insome embodiments, the various powders may be fed separately and directlyinto the final mixer 420 (via feeders such as feeder 418).

Concurrently to the powder(s), the hydrated protein and finaloil-water-binder emulsion are dosed or continuously fed into the finalmixer 420, which mixes these ingredients in a fully or nearly continuousflow to create a dough. In some embodiments, the final mixer 420simultaneously mixes and conveys the dough. In some embodiments, thefinal mixer 420 is a twin screw continuous mixer; in others, final mixer420 is a single-shaft mixing auger. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 ,the mixed dough is conveyed via an incline conveyor 432 into the hopperof a forming machine 434, wherein the resulting mixed dough can furtherbe formed and have other production tasks applied to it.

In some embodiments, analog and/or digital sensors may be integratedthroughout the processing system, such that process metrics such asliquid flow rates, dry material flow rates, pressure, and temperaturemay be continually monitored and recorded in a digital system. Infurther embodiments, controls may be integrated throughout theprocessing system, such that process requirements and metrics such asingredient or coolant liquid flow rates, dry material flow rates,pressure, and temperature may be continually controlled by a digitalsystem, in an automated and/or manual fashion. Additionally, barcodescanning or other material lot code tracking methods may be integratedwith this monitoring and/or control system, such that final dough outputis correlated with particular times and/or batches of raw ingredientsadded to the feeder hoppers.

Although the foregoing disclosure has been described in detail by way ofillustration and example for purposes of clarity and understanding, itwill be recognized that the above described disclosure may be embodiedin numerous other specific variations and embodiments without departingfrom the spirit or essential characteristics of the disclosure. Certainchanges and modifications may be practiced, and it is understood thatthe disclosure is not to be limited by the foregoing details, but ratheris to be defined by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system configured to produce a meat analogueproduct, the system comprising: an emulsifying machine configured toemulsify two or more different foodstuff ingredients to form anemulsion, wherein the emulsifying machine is further configured toconvey the emulsion toward a mixer; a hydrator configured to hydrate oneor more different foodstuff ingredients that are not in the emulsion toform hydrated foodstuff particles, wherein the hydrator is furtherconfigured to convey the hydrated foodstuff particles toward the mixer;and the mixer configured to mix the hydrated foodstuff particles withthe emulsion to form a dough that is configured to be processed furtherto form a meat analogue product, wherein the mixer is further configuredto convey the dough toward another system component.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the plurality of different foodstuff ingredientsinclude oil, water, one or more binding agents, and one or more forms ofprotein.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the hydrator is furtherconfigured to process the hydrated foodstuff particles into smallerhydrated foodstuff particles.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein theemulsifying machine, the hydrator, and the mixer are all configured tooperate simultaneously and continuously to form a meat analogue productthat is continuously output from the system.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein the emulsifying machine is configured to emulsify and conveysimultaneously and in a continuous manner.
 6. The system of claim 1,wherein the hydrator is configured to hydrate and convey simultaneouslyand in a continuous manner.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the mixeris configured to mix and convey simultaneously and in a continuousmanner.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more differentfoodstuff ingredients include textured protein and the hydrator is atextured protein hydrator.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein thehydrator includes a material passage located between a pair of nestedcylinders.
 10. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a pre-mixerconfigured to mix the two or more different foodstuff ingredients toform a slurry, wherein the pre-mixer is further configured to convey theslurry toward the emulsifying machine.
 11. An apparatus configured toproduce a meat analogue product, the apparatus comprising: anemulsifying machine configured to emulsify oil, water, and one or morebinding agents to form a final emulsion, wherein the emulsifying machineis further configured to convey the final emulsion toward a final mixer;one or more hydrators configured to hydrate one or more forms ofprotein, wherein the one or more hydrators are further configured toconvey the hydrated protein toward the final mixer; and the final mixerconfigured to mix the final emulsion with the hydrated protein to form afinal dough, wherein the final mixer is further configured to convey thefinal dough toward another system component.
 12. The apparatus of claim11, wherein the emulsifying machine, the one or more hydrators, and thefinal mixer are all configured to operate simultaneously andcontinuously to form a meat analogue product that is continuouslyoutput.
 13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the one or more hydratorsare further configured to process the hydrated protein into smallerprotein particles.
 14. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising: apre-mixer configured to mix two or more of the oil, the water, and theone or more binding agents in a controlled ratio to form a suspension,wherein the pre-mixer is further configured to convey the suspensiontoward the emulsifying machine.
 15. The apparatus of claim 11, furthercomprising: one or more chilling components configured to chill the oil,the water, the emulsifying machine, the one or more hydrators, the finalmixer, or any combination thereof.
 16. The apparatus of claim 11,wherein the other system component is a forming machine configured toform the final dough into a meat analogue chicken nugget, meat analogueburger patty, or other meat analogue product.
 17. The apparatus of claim11, wherein at least one of the one or more hydrators includes amaterial passage located between a pair of nested cylinders, thematerial passage including an inner shaft or cylinder that rotates toconvey the hydrated protein.
 18. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein atleast one of the one or more hydrators is configured to hydrate the oneor more forms of protein progressively it conveys the one or more formsof protein.
 19. An automated meat analogue production system,comprising: a hydrator configured to hydrate foodstuff ingredients toform hydrated foodstuff particles, wherein the hydrator is furtherconfigured to simultaneously convey the hydrated foodstuff particlestoward a mixer; and the mixer configured to mix the hydrated foodstuffparticles with a separate emulsion to form a dough configured to form ameat analogue product, wherein the mixer is further configured tosimultaneously convey the dough toward another system component.
 20. Theautomated meat analogue production system of claim 19, wherein thehydrator is further configured to process the hydrated foodstuffparticles into smaller hydrated foodstuff particles while simultaneouslyhydrating and conveying.